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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. wound — an injury
  3. degree — from a university
  4. fine — high quality
  5. current — of water
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. fine — all right
  8. wound — an injury
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. march — the month
  11. press — newspapers
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — help
  14. march — the month
  15. press — to push
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. press — a publisher
  18. degree — an amount
  19. march — music
  20. hand — in cards
  21. content — happy
  22. degree — temperature
  23. content — the amount
  24. current — electric

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com